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Patriots & Ex-Pats

Muse for Monday

When was the last time you pulled an all-niter? Is it something you do regularly? Are the lines between day and night eternally blurred by the light of the lamp and the screen?

Mantra seems to think it is not necessarily the obligations, worry and distractions we create and entertain which are the issue. Since she has no true concept of time, I often wonder if she thinks we humans are a sub-par life form, with our incessant need for repose.

Up All Night

Cup of ink starts the morning.
Is it really a new day?
From the light of yesterday
To this dawn, the lamp stayed lit.

Sleep is not elusive. It is stubborn,
Flatly refusing sweet invitations
To star in much needed relaxation,
Instead leaving behind these bloodshot stares.

The tiles in the ceiling are sure
They are being replaced too soon,
Counted four dozen times by noon,
Since they are slower than fat sheep.

One hundred pages of doodles,
Despicable attempt at art,
Not evocative to the heart,
But terse and surly, ugly lines.

The nap of the rug’s worn shiny.
Three hundred forty six paces.
Swearing the footprints make faces,
Their mouths in yawning mockery.

The pillow has been fluffed again,
Honestly, “punched” more accurate.
Limp: Flattened out because of it.
Insomnia: Danger to all.

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Do you have days where you wonder what day it is because you have been up for more than two? What do you do to fall asleep? Have you ever threatened ceiling tiles or beaten a pillow into submission?

What is the longest period you have stayed awake? And why did you?

(c) Red Dwyer 2012Re-blogging of this or any other post on The M3 Blog is expressly forbidden.Copyright and Privacy Policy availablein The Office.

27 Comments

When I was young, I was a night owl. I have no idea what happened once I started a family (tee hee). Let’s see: I was working raising a kid, doing everything myself, making my ex look good (till I didn’t). No wonder I was tired.
Now I’m retired, and I LOVE my sleep. I don’t know what the heck that means.

“Up All Night” is vivid. I hear the pacing, see the doodling, counting the ceiling tiles and PUNCHing the pillow.Tess Kann recently posted..Flash in the Pan – Lightening

I told Angie, I think we all stay awake from birth to around kindergarten…I think it returns, too, when they hit teenagerdom. I think at some point each one of us has tried one of these techniques. 😉 I may not be a pillow puncher, but I am definitely a pillow smotherer.

I used to be able to do it, but I need my sleep now. I don’t think I’ve ever really had insomnia, at least that lasted that long. I have certainly been sleep deprived many times however. For years at a time when the kids were young lol. Saturday nights are always bad for me because I have to get up and teach on Sunday–can’t get the brain to shut up! Fortunately, I usually get a Sunday afternoon nap ;).Angela Young recently posted..Loving perfectly